Monday, August 19, 2013

In an earlier post,
we talked about James Turrell's residency at the Mattress Factory and how it
exemplifies the Mattress Factory's continuing and fundamental commitment to
providing artists with the resources of space, time, and support without
encumbrances or expectations of any sort. Not only does this commitment remain today, some 35
years later, it stands as one of the museum's guiding principles and a hallmark
of the mission of the museum.
When we look at the James Turrell artworks that developed in this unique
environment and how those works advanced the entire spectrum of his works (pun,
um, intended), we can't help but feel a little encouraged for our next 35
years!

James Turrell, Danaë, 1983

Photograph by Florian Holzer

During his residency, Turrell slept at one of the Mattress
Factory neighbor's house, shopped, cooked, and ate with Barbara and Michael,
and spent hours drafting, building, revising, and adjusting to his satisfaction
two artworks, Danaë and Pleiades. While Danaë
is a framed light piece similar to his earlier "Space Division
Constructions"[1] works Acton, 1976
and Cumo, 1976,
Pleiades marked a clear departure
from his earlier work. Pleiades was his first foray into a type
of artwork referred to as "Dark
Spaces" or "Dark Places." Later "Dark Spaces"
include Selene, 1984 at the Capp
Street Project, Meso, 1986 at the
Hirschorn Museum of Art in Washington, DC, Thought
When Seen, 1988 at the Jean Bernier Gallery in Athens, Greece, and even
portions worked into the construction of Roden
Crater, 1976-. These works,
and others, all relate to the efforts and artistic developments that occurred
while working on Pleiades at the
Mattress Factory, way back in 1983.

Working Drawings for James Turrell's Pleiades, 1983

As anyone who has seen Pleiades,
visitors to the artwork are guided by a handrail up a long ramp in a
pitch-black hallway leading to a viewing platform where they gaze at a
seemingly completely dark space.
Resisting the urge to click on one's phone for light, the viewer waits,
maybe twenty, maybe thirty, or even forty minutes while the eyes adjust. As Craig Adcock, scholar of 20th American
art, describes Pleiades, "Gradually,
dim areas of luminance seem to become perceptible and to move through the
space, but these are often phosphenes generated by the random nerve firing
inside our own retinas." Eventually a physiological adjustment called the
Purkinje Shift occurs allowing the retina's cones and rods to perceive a blob
of color first blue and then red, suspended in the darkness (we all paid
attention in 9th Grade Biology, right?).
The viewer becomes aware of the ability to perceive color (cones do
this) within the darkness (rods do this).
This process rewards the viewer with not only an artwork, but also the
opportunity to observe our eyes in the process of perceiving.[2]
Adcock explains:

... [P]erception at
these threshold levels is never really a matter of "seeing" so much
as "sensing" the light's presence. Such viewing is hard to describe. The light is there and in no way indefinite. Indeed, in some ways, it is more
"definite" than the light of normal experience. As it appears in the world, light lacks
its own place; it is most often seen on something else as illumination. In the subtle conditions of the Dark
Pieces, light has ipseity. It is
itself, just as light, just as the basic stuff of perception, and in that
unique place, it is extremely intense, despite the fact that it hardly exists
at all."[3]

It is a truly fascinating piece. Check out these handwritten notes about Danaë and Pleiades found in the Mattress Factory archives.

The exhibition was such a success that the Mattress Factory
and Turrell agreed to keep the works on view beyond the initial exhibition
period and to come to an agreement on a purchase price. By a stroke of serendipity, Turrell took
an interest in a giant, 10-foot motorized band saw that Barbara had rescued
from the trash heap at one of the local hospitals several years prior and
offered to exchange Pleiades for it,
along with her stash of aged black walnut. Formally, the acquisition marked the start of one the
nation's leading permanent collections of contemporary installation art. It also prompted a decidedly informal
cross-country road trip to transport the giant saw and the stash of walnut from
Pittsburgh to Arizona during which Barbara, Michael, and Turrell forged what
has come to be a long and lasting friendship. We'll hear more about that road trip in our next
installment. Stay tuned!

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

As you may have noticed on your commute this week, the
Andy Warhol Bridge has been yarn bombed.Thanks to the dedication and vision of fiber artist Amanda Gross, 1,847
volunteer knitters and installers, and a number of foundations and
institutional partners, Knit the Bridge stands as the largest
yarn bomb in the United States! Knit the
Bridge is not only super cool piece of ephemeral art, but it helps to raise
awareness of the wealth of public art in the Pittsburgh region.In celebration of the Knit the Bridge project and the recent
release of the new edition of the Pittsburgh Art in Public Places: Downtown Walking Tour ,we did a little digging around in our archives to find a handful of historical
video clips of the public art works produced by the Mattress Factory artists
over the course of our 35-year history.

One of the earliest public art pieces the Mattress Factory
supported was a series of performances by Chrome, an Australia-based
performance art group.Having
already performed all over the world, in Tehran, in Paris, all over Australia,
and throughout Canada, the Mattress Factory's presentation of Chrome was the
group's premier performance in the United States.The performances took place in early August, 1983 and progressed
from Market Square to One Oxford Center.Consisting of a unique mix of song, dance, music, mime, comedy, and
improvisation. The performances captivated crowds in downtown Pittsburgh.

Chrome's artwork Public Performance in Market Square in downtown Pittsburgh.

Chrome's artwork Public Performance at One Oxford Center in downtown Pittsburgh.

A couple years later, the Mattress Factory again presented a
public art performance work that fascinated local audiences.The work, Steamshuffle Pittsburgh by artists Christopher Janney and Joan
Brigham, consisted of eight large glass panels that were inscribed with the
text of a poem by Emmett Williams and installed upright in Oliver Plaza in
downtown Pittsburgh.In this
interactive work, movements by pedestrians triggered electronic sounds and activated
jets of steam aimed at the glass panels, thereby revealing the text of the inscribed
poems.

Look in the botton right corner of this video to
see Founder and Co-Director Barbara Luderwoski chatting with passersby as a
child interacts with Steamshuffle
Pittsburgh.

Steamshuffle
Pittsburgh was exhibited during the winter of 1985 in Pittsburgh.

The Mattress
Factory also maintains two public artworks as part of the museum's permanent
collection.These works, Garden Installation by Winifred Lutz and
Music for a Garden by Rolf Julius,
are available to the public during regular museum hours.Check out this video of artist Winifred
Lutz sitting in the chair in Garden
Installation.

Winifred Lutz sitting in the chair in Garden Installation.

and this video of her walking around the various levels of
the artwork.

Caption: Winifred Lutz in Garden Installation.

You can read more about Winifred Lutz's artwork at our
website or stop by the museum lobby to see the models she created while planning
the artwork.

Rolf Julius's sound work, Music for a Garden, neighbors the Lutz garden, but is an
independent work of public art.In
this archival video, Rolf Julius discusses the relationship between Music for a Garden and Winifred Lutz's Garden Installation.

Interview with Rolf Julius about Music for a Garden.

Julius discusses the sculptural
elements to his sound piece.

You can read more about Music
for a Garden and several other Julius artworks on view at the Mattress
Factory at our website.

As you can see, public art plays a vital role in the
creative life of Pittsburgh.We
tip our hats to the Knit the Bridge project and to Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council's Office of Public Art for
all their efforts to raise awareness of the rich cultural heritage available in
our region!

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Join us in the MF Lobby on Sunday, August 11th for our 'almost end of Summer' CraftFactory! Come explore hand-made objects and artwork from Pittsburgh makers. The event runs during museum hours, 1-5pm. Museum admission is required to shop - yet, we are offering half-price admission throughout August. Do some early holiday shopping or pick up a treat for yourself! - This event is sponsored by the MF Shop.

Trilodeon creates living arts for your everyday growth
and evolution. Find engaging creations that heal the body, enliven the
mind and stir the soul! We make high consciousness arts, learning toys, healing
tools, apparel, eco decor and more.
Niffer Desmond has crossed disciplines as an artist, activist, healer, and
consciousness pioneer. In December 2012 Niffer created the 'Evolutionary Art
Faire' - a cross pollination of brilliant creatives combining healing, spirit,
music and art. With a flair for the fun and curious, Niffer continues to
explore strange new worlds, uniting and igniting the imagination of Spaceship
Earth. Also on Etsy.

-
Kitsch, noun. Art, objects, or design considered to be in poor taste because of
excessive garishness or sentimentality, but appreciated in an ironic way. -

The
work of Sam Ditch explores obsessive florals, googly eyes and glitter.
Sam’s work delves deep into the nostalgia of mid-century America and challenges
the notion of the uber feminine. 99.9% of materials used are second hand – so
not only is this work awesome, it’s very eco-friendly.

Sam Ditch is
a Bellevue resident, and a 2009 graduate of Slippery Rock University. Sam has
exhibited work in the Pittsburgh area and currently has work for sale at
Wildcard and on Etsy. She’s a collector of all things kitsch and an avid folk music
consumer.

Rose Duggan is
a painter living and working in Lawrenceville, Pennsylvania. Her work has
focused on small-scale acrylic abstract paintings since 2009. In her work, she
strives to create color intersections that are playful and engaging. She
graduated from Allegheny College and most recently has been featured as one of
Pittsburgh Arts Council's Emerging Artist at the annual Three Rivers Arts
Festival as well as selected for Pittsburgh City Paper's 2013 ArtBox project.

As
one of the oldest art forms, ceramics has a versatility shared with few other
mediums. Vanessa's work is a conversation in form vs. function. Form, shape and
surface decoration are combined to create objects that walk the line between
usable and sculpture. Themes include the abstracted vase, drawings etched in
clay (a technique she developed herself) and the never ceasing desire to push
high-fired stoneware to its physical limits.

Vanessa
Kettering creates her ceramic work at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, and
is a member of the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh. A trained art educator,
she works at an after school program in Regent Square and has led several art
classes for a variety of ages. She speaks some Italian and is studying Japanese
language and culture.

Lynne Kropinak is a self-taught jewelry maker, flea
market addict, and enthusiast of all things crafty. Her work is inspired and
constructed with found and salvaged materials: pictures out of old books,
gemstones and leaves, polymer clay, paint, recycled trinkets, conversations
heard in line at the grocery store, and other things too good to throw away.
She has been making and selling crafts for over 25 years and delights in
sharing skills and inspiration with other crafters. charmed by nature wares can
be seen at many local craft markets in Pittsburgh and also at Wildcard. Lynne is also mom to the 2 Pittsburgh Craft-O-Tron
machines that roam the city spreading the joy of local handmade goodies in
small boxes.

John is actually Thea, a
true rustbelt gal who makes Pittsburgh greeting cards out of her century-old
apartment in Aspinwall. She believes in the importance of handcraft,
correspondence, regional culture, and -- perhaps most of all -- humor. Her
cards are printed on paper manufactured by a sixth-generation, hydropowered
Midwestern company, and she uses mostly vintage and distressed fonts based on
wood type and mid-century modern aesthetics. When she isn’t printing and
folding cards, she is most likely behind the counter at Wildcard, ordering a
vegan pizza from Spak Brothers, or spoiling her Mom’s three rescue cats.

Karen Page has been a practicing
artist and educator for more than three decades. She began her love of textiles
when sewing and knitting clothes for her Troll dolls and then advancing to
sewing her own clothes in high school to spinning and knitting one-of-kind
sweaters. Exhibitions and study have led her to
Denmark, Turkey, and Kyrgyzstan – where she conducted feltmaking workshops over
four summers to various women’s co-ops. Karen teaches the textile studies
classes (and occasionally costume) at CAPA. Her work has been recognized with
regional, national, and international awards including a PCA Individual Artistic Fellowship Grant and a NEA Individual Artistic Fellowship grant.

Electronic Component Jewelry from MakeWan. Shanning Wan has a Web/graphic design
background, and is interested in the intersection of traditional craftsmanship, media
art and digital fabrication. MakeWan can be found on Etsy, and at makewan.com.

Edited 8/3/13 - Emily Walley will not be able to participate in this CraftFactory, but her earrings are for sale in the MF Shop. Her work can be purchased on Etsy.